Harpreet Singh, also known as Happy Passia, a most-wanted terrorist responsible for more than 14 grenade attacks in Punjab, has been arrested in the United States. The FBI and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) arrested Passia on Friday in Sacramento, California.
Passia, according to the FBI, is a member of two global terrorist groups and entered the country illegally. He employed burner phones and aliases to evade detection while allegedly coordinating terror operations from overseas.
Passia has been accused in the National Investigation Agency’s (NIA) chargesheet for the September 2024 grenade attack in Chandigarh on the residence of a retired Punjab Police officer.
The attack was attributed to Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), a banned terror outfit.
The NIA suspects Passia and Pakistan-based terrorist Harwinder Singh Sandhu, alias Rinda, as the prime conspirators.
Investigations uncover the pair financed and coordinated operatives Rohan Masih and Vishal Masih, who scouted and carried out the attacks.
All have been booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), Explosive Substances Act, and other legal provisions. The case is being investigated under file number RC15/2024/NIA/DLI.
Passia is also connected to a December 2023 operation when Punjab Police busted a Pakistan-ISI-backed terror module. That case, involving grenade attacks in Batala and Gurdaspur, led to the arrest of five individuals, including another accused mastermind, Abhijot Singh.
Currently, Happy Passia is wanted in at least 18 criminal cases in Punjab, all related to terrorism and inciting communal unrest.
Senior Punjab Police officials confirmed ongoing cooperation with U.S. authorities to dismantle networks associated with him and others.
